Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography/Chilomacon, Charles

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579408Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography — Chilomacon, Charles

CHILOMACON, Charles, chief of the Piscataway Indians. The principal town in his territory was Kittamaqundi, near the present village of Piscataway, fifteen miles south of Washington, D. C. When Father White arrived there in 1639 he was cordially received by the chief, who entertained him hospitably and consented to content himself with one wife at his request. At a general meeting of his tribe, Chilomacon announced his determination to become a Christian. He then went to St. Mary's and solicited baptism. The rite was postponed, and he was advised to return with his family the next year; but the ceremony took place on 5 July, 1640, in the presence of the governor's secretary and the leading people of the settlement. Chilomacon received the name of Charles, and his wife that of Mary, in honor of the king and queen of England. He sent his daughter to St. Mary's to be educated. As she is spoken of as “queen of the Piscataways” in 1642, Chilomacon probably died soon after his baptism.